Doctors in Cowboy State See Lots of Discipline

Laramie, Wy – Wyoming disciplines its doctors more than just about every other state. Washington-based Public Citizen issued a report this week stating that Wyoming ranks behind only Kentucky and Alaska in taking serious disciplinary action against doctors. Public Citizen calculated the number of serious disciplinary actions that state medical boards have imposed against doctors. It classifies serious actions as medical license revocations, surrenders, suspensions and probation/restrictions. By that standard, Public Citizen reports Wyoming had just over eight actions per one-thousand doctors in 2005. Kentucky had just over nine actions per thousand and Alaska had about eight-and-a-half per thousand. Lowest in the country was Mississippi with about one-point-six actions per one-thousand doctors. Carole Shotwell is executive secretary of the Wyoming Board ofMedicine. She says Wyoming has been at or near the top of such rankings for years. Shotwell says that shows the board is doing its job.